My name is Leon Purley, aka “Leon the Jokester,” a blind comedian in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I grew up in Moreno Valley, California, home of money and pollution. I was raised in a Christian household by my mom.
One of my biggest hobbies as a kid was playing basketball and writing funny stories. My mother kept me with a pen and notepad at all times. She saw something special in me and knew someday I would write many books.
I attended Rainbow Ridge elementary school and always had a lot of friends. I met a kid in my neighborhood who was cool at first, then later on started offering me temptations to get in trouble. He exposed me to “inappropriate films” not suitable for kids or adults.
At 11, my young mind had seen “unclean” things that followed me for multiple years. I wanted to be free from this level of bondage, but didn’t understand how to be delivered.
In 2004, I packed up my bags and moved out of my mother’s house to attend college in Tulsa, Oklahoma to study journalism. College was a struggle for me, but my mother’s prayers got me through every semester.
School was a big challenge for me. Learning complex concepts never made sense to me. God got me through, so I could graduate from Oral Roberts University.
During this time, I felt like God was pulling on me to go into ministry, but like Jonah in the Bible, I continued to run from my calling.
On April 20th, 2009, God spoke to me and said, “This is your last warning. It’s time to repent of your sins.” The next day I called my mom and she led me to Jesus Christ. I got saved that day and baptized on July 8th, 2009.
I went through a season of unemployment and trying to make sense of life and ministry. I kept praying and God got me a job at the church as a youth ministry DJ. It was so much fun.
In 2016, I was afflicted with an eye disease called “RP” and I stepped down from my day job and jumped into comedy. For the last nine years, the Lord has used me to spread the Gospel one joke at a time.
My goal in life is to keep winning souls for God, impacting lives by sharing love, hope and laughter.
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